Kids in the kitchen

One of my goals as a mom is to say "yes" to my kids when they want to do something and it might seem inconvenient to me but it would ultimately be good for them.  Lately, there have been a lot of requests to cook, bake, and help in the kitchen so I'm trying to take advantage of that.  I think this has been inspired by a book we've been reading but more on that in my next post!

The other night, I wanted to make fried rice with leftover rice and some grilled mahi-mahi that we needed to use up.  When I told Big she could make that, Middle wanted in on the action, so I said she could be in charge of the kids' food that night.  She made grilled cheese with a side dish of ice cream sandwiches. Little was very happy with the side dish choice and her chore for the evening was setting the table.

Big did a pretty good job following the recipe . . . I had to help her scramble the egg, do some chopping, and judge when the rice was fried enough.

You can find the original recipe for fried rice here.  We added the grilled mahi-mahi at the end until it was heated through.  If you haven't seen my technique for grilled cheese - it's a complete lifesaver and now that Middle can do it, she can help me out at lunch time or supper time.

Baked Turkey Sliders

I've traveled more this fall both with and without my kids than I have in years and years combined. When I look at the calendar, it gives me a slight sense of panic and it seems like most weeks, I've been preparing for a trip and packing or recovering from a trip and unpacking.  The travel has been awesome - more to come on that.  But, in between the busy weekend trips, ordinary life hasn't seemed so rushed and we've settled into our fall routine.  My husband and I often comment to each other that there's not much more fun than watching these girls with their huge imaginations, fun ideas, and the activities they enjoy.  Here's a little glimpse into our lives these days:

Nail saloning - what a great dad! 

Belated birthday lunch, nail appointment and shopping trip with Big 

Finding sight words in the grocery store

Dreamy the hamster 

Charlotte's Web Diorama

"Reading" my book in the car

New "owl" masks from New Orleans

I've been on this slider kick - my kids like little sandwiches and having a warm sandwich with a cup of soup or salad is a great fall supper.  It's especially nice for those evenings when we're running around with soccer practice, piano lessons, and other activities.

I was inspired to bake these in the oven after my friend from our book club made little hamburger sliders this way.  It looked so easy when she pulled out a whole pan of burgers from the oven!  This is the version that my kids like.  One of them doesn't enjoy the buttery onion/mustard topping, so I don't brush all of them with the topping before baking.  You could jazz up the filling a little bit by adding additional vegetables, condiments, or toppings before baking, but we usually do that after so everyone can make them just the way they like them.

Baked Turkey Sliders (makes 1 dozen)

12 dinner rolls (I often use the Trader Joe's slider buns or the Kings Hawaiian rolls)
12 slices of deli meat (we use turkey and ham)
12 slices of deli thin cheese (provolone or swiss melt nicely)
1/2 cup butter
2 T sugar
1 T honey mustard
2 T dried onion flakes
1 T poppy seeds

Preheat oven to 400 and lightly spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray.  Place the bottom half of the dinner rolls or buns on the pan.  Spread the deli meat and cheese evenly over the rolls.  Place the top halves on the bottom halves of the rolls or buns to make sandwiches.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter.  Add the sugar, honey mustard, dried onion and poppy seeds and stir constantly until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture has slightly thickened.  Remove from heat.  Use a brush to brush the tops of the buns with the butter/onion mixture.

Bake until the tops are golden brown and the filling is melty - about 15 minutes.

Football food!

How about them Broncos?  We had a great time with friends watching the Broncos victory over the Steelers last weekend and we have two more great football weekends left in the season.  If you need some food ideas for the big game, these mini french dip crescents are something new I made that turned out great.  In fact, they were pretty addicting and I think this sums up what happened to me as I watched the game:

I don't usually think of making french dip at home and what I liked here was using deli roast beef and making the simple au jus instead of a big roast and the au jus with the pan drippings.  I bought the horseradish sauce in the deli area at Vons but if you can't find it easily, I think a spicy mustard would be a good substitution.  You could also use a thinly sliced swiss cheese instead of provolone.  My husband's only critique was that the Pillsbury Crescent dough is a bit sweet and that something like phyllo or pie dough might be better.  I'll post an update if I give that a try.

Mini French Dip Crescents with Easy Au Jus (8 servings)
(recipe from Mama Loves Food blog)

2 T olive oil
1/2 red onion, diced
1 tsp minced garlic
2.5 cups beef broth
1 T worcestershire sauce
freshly ground pepper

2 packages crescent rolls (8 count)
1 lb deli roast beef, thinly sliced
1/2 lb deli provolone cheese, thinly sliced
Horseradish sauce


Start by making the au jus - saute the red onion in olive oil until soft and slightly browned.  Add the garlic cloves and saute another minute more.  Pour a little bit of beef broth (1/4 cup or so) in the pan and deglaze.  Add the rest of the beef broth, the worcestershire sauce, and a couple grinds of pepper and bring to a boil.  Simmer for 30 minutes.  Strain and return to the pan.  I left it off the heat while I baked the crescents and then heated it back up to serve.  You could also make it ahead and refrigerate it until you're ready to heat and serve.  I used the little dishes that are for soy sauce when we have sushi to serve the au jus on the side.

To make the crescents, unroll the crescents on a large lined cookie sheet (silpat, foil or parchment paper).  Spread 1-2 tsp. or horseradish on each crescent and lay one slice of roast beef and a half slice of provolone on top of the crescent.  Roll the crescents starting with the wide end and ending at the narrow end.

Bake at 375 degrees for 11-13 minutes, until crescents are lightly browned and cheese is melty.  Serve warm with au jus.  (makes 16 total).

Grilled Cheese Gamechanger

Big the Turkey

I know this is the week where we have big cooking ambitions and obligations . . . turkeys, pies, side dishes, creative uses for leftovers, but I am here to give you a simple idea for Wednesday night's dinner before the big feast or Friday's lunch the day after when you have hungry kids and don't feel like making a mess of your kitchen.  It's . . . . Grilled Cheese!  All of my kids like it, it has some protein and it has some staying power to ward off the inevitable request for snacks that always comes about 30 minutes after meals in my house.

I burn grilled cheese all the time.  And set off the smoke alarms.  I've tried lower heat, my big griddle . . . I don't know what my problem is.  But, thanks to Pinterest, I have a new solution that makes this crazy easy.  If you've all discovered this ages ago, sorry (and why didn't you tell me sooner??).

Here's the gamechanger:  You're going to make your grilled cheese in the oven and you're going to make 4-6 at once.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with foil and spray it - I use olive oil spray, you can use another non-stick cooking spray, or you could butter it.

Lay one layer of bread and top with the cheese of your choice.  Slices are fine and shredded cheese is fine - whatever you have. If you want other fillings, or any other spread on the bread, that's ok too (my husband likes dijon mustard on the bread, basil and a couple kinds of cheese).

Top with another piece of bread.  Spray the tops of the bread with more olive oil (or butter them or something).  Lay another piece of foil on the top of the sandwiches and then set another baking sheet on top.  The heavier the baking sheet, the better.  You're basically making a panini press out of them.

Stick it in the oven for 10-15 minutes.  Peeking is ok and flipping is not necessary. You want them nice and brown without burning.    Mine turned out perfectly!!  Brown, crispy on the edges, melty in the middle - yum!  It's not a turkey, but it's a legit way to feed the hungry masses.  And it goes good with leftover pecan pie or apple pie!

It's September!

Happy Labor Day Weekend!  How is it September already???  I was reviewing our Summer Bucket List the other day and while summer isn't over for 3 more weeks, with the start of school this week, it feels like it's on it's way out the door.  We did pretty good on the list (and I have good excuses in my head for a few of these things that didn't get done).  It was fun to write them down and check some of them off.

1.  Go to Catalina Island (done 6/1)
2.  Snorkel in Hawaii (done 6/22)
3.  Eat veggies from our garden (done 7/23)
4.  Have a water fight (done 6/9)
5.  Invite friends over for a swim day (done 7/12)
6.  Make homemade ice cream (done 7/11)
7.  Go see fireworks somewhere (done 7/4)
8.  Take Big to the Hollywood Bowl
9.  Visit the girls' great-grandma in Atlanta (done 8/1)
10.  "Camp" in our backyard
11.  Visit the Discovery Science Center in Orange
12.  Have a sleepover with Sasha
13.  Go to Seattle to visit Amber (planned for 9/14)
14.  Run a 5K and a 10K
15.  Take tennis lessons
16.  Go to the beach (done 7/10)
17.  Summer reading program at the library (enrolled 7/5)
18.  Throw Little a birthday party (done 8/11)
19.  Go away overnight without our kids (done for 8/23)
20.  Work on How to Teach Your Child with Big (started 7/16 - only lasted 3 or 4 lessons)
21.  Take Little to My Gym (both girls - done 8/9)
22.  Go to the water park at the Santa Fe Dam
23.  See World of Color at Disneyland (went to Cars Land at CA Adventure on 8/29)
24.  Sleep in past 8:00 some day (done 7/5 and 7/6)
25.  Take a day trip on the train from the Claremont Depot
26.  Visit the Griffith Observatory and Planetarium (done 6/10/12)

If you want a yummy taste of summer that doesn't involve real "cooking," try these sandwiches my friend Erika made. I've been trying to copy them - so delicious I could eat one every day!

Start with a ciabatta or french roll.  Spread some mayonnaise on the bottom and top with sun dried tomatoes (I buy the julienned ones in olive oil from TJs).  Slice some fresh mozzarella cheese and layer that next.  Top with fresh tomatoes (we had some from a friend's garden).  Sprinkle the tomatoes with salt and pepper and top with some fresh basil (from our garden!).  Eat.

Spring is here!

I'm excited for spring but not very excited that today is my last day of spring break.  Off to work with a new (and challenging) schedule tomorrow.  So, here are some spring things to share:

George, our pet tortoise, has emerged from hibernation much to the delight of the girls.  Little gets up in the morning and says "Turtle.  George.  Outside.  Turtle.  George.  Outside."  She loves looking for him but is scared to touch him.

We went to a park that we like last week and walked on a little trail.  It's a mini hike, perfect for little girls, and we saw 3 ducks and 2 lizards.  After the walk, I showed Big how to make clover necklaces.  Reminded me of sitting outside of the old Altadena church with Shayna and Sarah on Sunday afternoons.

While I was on spring break, I made one of my husband's favorite dinners (the Green Soup) and what I thought was Big's favorite dinner (spaghetti and meatballs).  She promptly informed me that her "new favorite" was hamburgers.  Good thing her Grammy is so nice and made those for her the next night!

With the green soup, I made this new salad/sandwich.  This would be perfect with fresh ingredients from your farmer's market.  You can eat it open face with a fork or knife or fold it like a taco and pick it up.  I loved it and had it the next few days for lunch as well.

Mediterranean Pita Pizzas (serves 2)

2 pitas (I used whole wheat)
1 roma tomato
1 small persian cucumber
1/2 avocado
1/4 cup kalamata olives, chopped
1/4 cup hummus
2 T crumbled feta cheese
salt, pepper, oregano, olive oil

Heat the oven to 400 degrees.  Put the pita pockets in for about 5 minutes - you want to warm them but not make them crispy.  While the pitas are heating, chop the tomato, cucumber, avocado and olives and place in a bowl.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper, oregano and drizzle with a little olive oil.  You can make this part ahead too and set it aside to let the flavors combine.

Spread each pita with 2 tablespoons of hummus.  Top with half of the vegetable mixture and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of feta cheese.  Serve immediately.

Sloppy Joes from Scratch

Ok - it's taking a great deal of restraint not to put up a video of Adam Sandler singing the Lunch Lady Song since I"m writing about sloppy joes.  But, I'm not in high school and you're probably not either so we can move on to an adult discussion of this sandwich.

I really like Sloppy Joes and I usually make them with that seasoning packet and ground turkey.  I know that all sorts of weird stuff (or, if not weird stuff, lots of sugar) can be in those packets and I've had an interest in making mine from scratch.  What appealed to me about this recipe is that it wasn't very time consuming.  I used my mini chopper and chopped the mushrooms pretty fine so big sister couldn't pick them out.  It didn't take much longer than my usual way of making Sloppy Joes and we liked the flavor.  

Recipe notes:  The next time, I might add a little less molasses and a little more hot sauce.  If you use salted tomato paste, taste the mixture before you add the rest of the salt in the recipe.  Also, Cooking Light said "cremini offer deeper, richer flavor but you can also use regular button mushrooms."

And, my from 7th post ever, another ground meat sandwich

Beef & Mushroom Sloppy Joes (4 servings)

from Cooking Light June 2011

12 oz ground sirloin (or good quality ground beef)

2 (8oz) packages sliced cremini mushrooms

1 c. chopped onion

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 c. tomato paste (no-salt or low sodium if possible)

1 T minced fresh oregano (or 2 tsp. dried oregano)

2 T red wine vinegar

2 T Worcestershire sauce

1 T molasses

1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

1/2 tsp. hot sauce

4 Kaiser rolls or hamburger buns

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat.  Add beef and cook for 4 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble.  While beef cooks, place mushrooms in a food processor.  Pulse 10 times or until finely chopped.  Add mushrooms, onion, and garlic to pan.  Cook for 3 minutes or until onion is tender.  Add tomato paste and next 5 ingredients (through salt) to pan.  Cook 5 minutes or until mushrooms are tender and liquid evaporates.  Stir in pepper and hot sauce.  Serve about 1 cup beef mixture on each bun. 

*filling is gluten free

Rosemary Chicken Salad Sandwiches

Tonight I used some leftover chicken to make my favorite chicken salad recipe. I use plain greek yogurt and rosemary from our garden. I like the crunch of the almonds but if you don't like nuts, you can easily leave them out. If you like onions, add a couple tablespoons of chopped green onions (or red onion would be good).

With the yogurt, nuts, and chicken, these pack a big protein punch. Usually I serve it in pita pockets and line the pita with a lettuce leaf but it's also good on bread and by itself. The flavor of the rosemary comes out if it's refrigerated a little while before serving so this is a good make ahead recipe. And, when I get around to that Rotisserie Chicken cookbook, this will be in it!

Rosemary Chicken Salad Sandwiches (4 sandwiches)

3 c. chopped cooked chicken
1/4 c. chopped roasted almonds
1/4 c. plain fat free yogurt
1/4 c. light mayonnaise
1 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
salt & pepper to taste

Combine ingredients and stir well.

BBQ Beef Sandwiches

Tonight I finally asked my husband if he was sick of having this for dinner. Luckily, he doesn't have a great memory and told me that we don't have them very often. I've made this recipe a couple times a month all summer and I still love it. The great part is that it's super easy and by using the slow cooker, you don't need to turn on your stove or oven.

I know that I could make my own barbecue sauce (if you have a good recipe, email me at whatsformeat@gmail.com) but I've been using bottled. One big lesson I learned is that a lot of commercially made BBQ sauces have high fructose corn syrup (as the first or second ingredient!) in them. So, I've switched from "Sweet Baby Ray's" which I had to doctor up with hot sauce and dijon mustard anyways to cut the sweetness to the Trader Joe's Hickory Smoke kind. Yeah, I know it seems weird to cook anything smoke-flavored if you live in the San Gabriel Valley and are smelling and seeing smoke all day from the fires.

For those of you who don't love BBQ sauce (Stephanie), or can't stomach it during wild fire season, I'll put my variation on this recipe with no hint of BBQ of any kind at the bottom of the recipe.

BBQ Beef Sandwiches (4-6 servings depending on the exact size of the cut of meat)

3 lbs beef, roasting cut (I usually use rump roast or brisket)
A can of beer
1/2 onion, sliced (optional)
1/2 bell pepper, sliced (optional)
1 - 2 cups bottled BBQ sauce
olive oil
salt and pepper

Put your beef in a crockpot and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Turn it over and do the same to the other side. Sprinkle the onion and bell pepper over the top (if using) and pour about half a can of beer over the top - just so it's surrounded in the crock pot but not totally immersed. Cook it for 6-8 hours. I usually do 4 hours on high and another 1-2 hours on low.

You're waiting for the beef to shred apart easily with two forks. At this point, scoop out most of the liquid (from the beer and the juice of the meat), shred the beef, and add the BBQ sauce. Stir in the BBQ sauce until it's as saucy as you like it and then leave it in the crock pot on low until it's all warmed through. Serve on bread, hamburger buns, in pita, with tortillas, or by itself. The leftovers are great.

Tip: If there's a lot of fat on the surface of your meat, don't cut it off. Before you shred the beef, take a pair of tongs and scrape it off the surface and throw it out. It'll make the meat more tender but you don't have to eat all the fatty parts.

Variation: Along with the onion, pepper, beer, salt and pepper, add 4 cloves of garlic (minced), 1T oregano, 1/2 tsp parsley, 1/2 tsp. basil, 1/2 tsp. thyme, some crushed red pepper, a bay leaf, 1/2 cup of sliced pepperoncinis and 1/4 c. juices from the pepperoncini jar. When you shred the meat, don't discard as much of the liquid. Serve it on toasted italian or French bread with the juice, more pepperoncinis, and slices of provolone cheese. I've been told that this is "Italian pot roast."

Finally, some red meat!

If you're wondering about the title of my blog, it came from something our family in Connecticut used to ask. Instead of asking, "What did you have for supper?" the question would sometimes be, "What was for meat?" To us, it was funny because we often ate supper without any meat. I didn't mean it to be ironic on my blog but it's taken me more than a week to actually have red meat for supper. While this dish could probably be made with ground turkey or chicken, I used lean ground beef. My Grandma Vi would be proud, even if she probably would have used a hamburger bun instead of a pita pocket.

I ripped this recipe out of a magazine somewhere and I have no idea which one or how old this is. The other day I was looking through a notebook with a bunch of untried recipes and I happened to have pitas, mushrooms, and frozen spinach (and, in the cellar, a bottle of open brandy) so I decided to give it a shot.



Not Sloppy Joes (but still a ground meat sandwich) Serves 4

1 1/2 T olive oil
10 oz pkg of sliced white mushrooms
1/2 tsp kosher sauce
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 lb ground beef
1/4 c. brandy
10 oz pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed & drained
3/4 c. grated parmesan
4 pitas (white or whole wheat)

Heat the oil in a large skillet and add the mushrooms, half the salt, and half the pepper. Cook for 3 minutes. Add the beef and cook until no longer pink. Spoon off any fat. Add the brandy and cook, stirring, until it's almost evaporated (only took about a minute or two). Stir in the spinach and cook for a couple of minutes until it's heated through. Remove from the heat and stir in the parmesan cheese. Fill each pita with the sandwich filling.

PS - Would it be Bec's blog without some games? How about "Name that Sandwich"? Put it in the comments and there will be a prize for the winner.